Monday, November 1, 2010

The gooey frosting photo sold me on these! But really, these were a hit, zucchini and all! At first I didn't tell them and no one knew, but when my oldest saw me talk about them on Facebook, the secret was out. lol. We all liked these, and I will be making them again!

*I wanted to add that when you make the batter for this, it will be dry and crumbly. Just pat it into the pan and once baked, it'll be gorgeous brownies!

*I am now making the frosting first and setting it in the fridge to chill and set up more while the brownies back and cool. The frosting will be runnier frosting, don't expect a butter cream texture.*1/2014: I have made these successfully gluten free, see recipe.

To make the frosting- In a small saucepan over low heat melt together the cocoa powder and margarine. Set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, with a mixer, blend confectioner’s sugar, milk, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. Stir in the margarine/cocoa mixture, allow to mix for a couple of minutes. Set in fridge to chill and set up more. Spread over cooled brownies, allow to set up (I placed mine in the fridge for a couple hours) then cut into squares. The longer these brownies sit, the thicker the frosting will become.

Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking dish. (I lined with parchment)

In a large bowl mix together oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract until well blended. In another bowl combine the flour, ½ cup cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. A little at a time stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in zucchini and walnuts. The batter will be dry and crumbly, don't worry. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish, lightly press.

Place into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until the brownies spring back when gently touched. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool before frosting.

UPDATE:

1/21/2014, I made a gluten free version, swapping the flour. It came out just as wonderful!

For the frosting today, I used 2 TBL less milk and added a little bit more powdered sugar. It's still runnier, but works. I just sliced the brownies and added some frosting before serving.

@Jeana, glad you like them! The frosting will be a little runny (you can kind of tell from my pics, see it starting to fall off the edges?), but did you allow it to cool enough after melting the ingredients? I let mine set for a while and it will get this light crust on top of the frosting. I bet if you store these in the fridge a little bit the frosting will set up better.

These are PERFECT for my son's Class. Since there is a little boy who can never eat teh baked goods because of an egg allergy. These brownies are so good, that the whole class can enjoy, with no eggs! thank you! -Sarah

These are PERFECT for my son's Class. Since there is a little boy who can never eat teh baked goods because of an egg allergy. These brownies are so good, that the whole class can enjoy, with no eggs! thank you! -Sarah

I made these today! I added about 3/4 cup of milk into the batter before folding in the zucchini and it went from a thick, drier batter to perfect cake batter. The cake was moist, chocolatey, and my husband had NO idea there were veggies in it. Great DELICIOUS recipe, thank you so much! :)

I've tried your recipe and it was amazing ! Moist, yummy and excellent. Unfortunately, they last for less than 24 hours !!! lol, my beloved almost eat all the plate ! So I must redo it and I expect how it will be delicious !

My husband liked the brownie part. I did not, it was not very sweet and was much cakier than I was expecting based on the picture. The frosting was a complete disaster. It was beyond runny and not good. I salvaged it a bit by adding more cocoa powder and butter. However, it was still not very good and it looked speckled and was not shiny. Very disappointed.

made these the other night and I loved them so much I practically ate the whole pan. so I loved that they felt so much lighter than normal brownies...I LOVE zucchini bread and thus loved these. my husband ate them (duh), but didn't share my love for them.

day 2 and 3 they were definitely better and set exactly like the pictures showed.

Hi, just wondering if you ever tried making a gluten free version? And if so, what did you use? My son is allergic to wheat & eggs, so if I could make these with a wheat-free flour mix and have them turn out well, I would be so happy! Thanks!

Hi Teresa, no eggs are needed for this, between the oil and moisture from the grated zucchini these magically turn out once baked. Be sure your oven is set at the correct time and not to over bake them. Going from the bowl to the oven, the batter is crumbly.

Hi Anonymous, I have not tried these gluten free yet, but I am guessing you could usen an even amount of a gluten free flour blend for the AP flour in these. I do miss having these so I may try it sometime.

Hi Shyanne, I have not use coconut oil, the only kind I have is the flavorful kind so that would make these coconutty. I would use an expeller pressed coconut oil (the same amounts)and see how these go. http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/expeller-pressed_coconut_oil.htm?gclid=COHCqITd57ACFaQaQgodglZ-xg

I'm baking the brownies righ now as i type this message. I'm a bit worried of the outcome. When i finished mixing all the ingredients the batter was crumbly. Is this normal? It didn't seem wet enough. Thanks.

Sorry but I didn't like these brownies. They had a good taste but I didn't like the texture. Too crumbly. I followed recipe to a t. It needed milk or some liquid in it. The frosting was like soup before I even frosted brownies. I put it in my stand mixer and doubled (or even more) the powder sugar and added more vanilla and a little bit of salt. These could be a great brownie just need a little more tweeking for my liking.

Hi Deanna, I'm sorry these did not turn out to your liking. I was reading on the site where I found this recipe and someone said they added 2 eggs and it came out a more cake like fluffy texture. You might try putting the frosting in the fridge a while to stiffen up. When I frosted mine I stuck them in the fridge before cutting.

I made these last night. They didn't turn out anything like the picture. The 'brownie' was more like cake, and the frosting was incredibly runny. I was so looking forward to the yummy brownies from the pictures, but it didn't turn out anything like them.

Hey got these in the oven now, added about 3 tbls milk but seemed like the batter got gluelike, but once i folded in the zuchinni they moistened a bit, they are smelling great..i also substituted cake flour for flour because i didnt want to go to town...i got to looking and i have a recipe for the icing, just different measurements so i am sure they will be great...thanks for sharing:)

My frosting was NOTHING like yours. I ended up throwing it away and making my own frosting. I followed to recipe to a "T" but it did not turn out. The brownies look good, though. My batter turned moist once I added the zucchini.We are currently waiting for my husband to get home from work so we can enjoy the brownies! :)

After reading several comments, I decided to follow the suggestion of one of the comments and added milk. Took a little longer to bake but they turned out great. I also used my own frosting. Haven't gotten a verdict yet but I tried them and they're delicious.

I stirred in the zuchinni really well and it turned in to a beautiful thick brownie type batter. And it looks amazing now that its out of the oven. I can't wait to frost them and try them out. My plan with the frosting is to add some extra powdered sugar to help it set up better since most say its a bit runny.

I made this recipe today and it is AMAZING! The frosting was runny but I just poured it on the whole thing and let it sit for awhile. It soaked in the top and the bottom and made it more fudgy. Thanks for this recipe.

I made these tonight and after reading some of the comments I added about a half cup to the brownie batter. It turned out very smooth and poured right into the pan. On the frosting I have a similar recipe for a sheet cake so I followed these ingredients but after I melted the butter and cocoa I turned off the burner then added the milk and vanilla to the same warm pan. Then I only mixed the sugar in about a quarter of a cup at a time. I did use about a half cup more than this called for. It took a lot of stiring and my arm was tired but it came out really smooth and no lumps. They were amazing!!

A suggestion to those with runny frosting:Try adding the milk a little bit at a time... So try maybe 1/4 cup first then add a little more at a time until you get more of a consistency you like. Frostings made with powdered sugar never quite come out te way you want when you go by the recipe so I always do less liquid first and always have more powder sugar on hand.

I stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest, and made these brownies the other day with zucchini from our garden. I could not believe how absolutely DELICIOUS they were!! I made them exactly as the recipe stated, and although the batter was very dry and crumbly, they came out moist and perfect! The frosting was very liquidy, but still tasted good and firmed up the next day! I just made my second batch and cut the milk in the frosting to half and it was PERFECT!!

These are awesome! I followed the recipe but made a few changes. First, I mixed the brownie batter with my hands after I had stirred in all together. It was not crumbly at all doing it this way and spread it in the pan the best I could. I baked it about 25 min. I started the frosting but couldn't finish so the butter and cocoa sat on my counter until I got home. It was hard so I added just a little bit of milk and microwaved it until soft. I added the milk that it called for in the recipe and it was perfect! It wasn't runny like some others had commented.

This recipe is identical to an old family recipe, except my grandmother's recipe includes 2 eggs to the batter. Much more brownie-like consistency. Also the frosting recipe I have calls for 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa powder (which equals 6Tbsp by the way), 2 tsp. vanilla, and MILK TO DESIRED CONSISTENCY. No butter or warming needed and the frosting turns out much more like frosting rather than the above runny chocolate water. Also for newbies: beware adding the butter to the milk in the above published recipe. If the milk is cold your butter mix will curdle.

Its so funny that no one has mentioned how yummy the batter is! I had a hard time getting the batter into the pan because the kids and I couldn't stop eating from the bowl. So I guess its a good thing there are no eggs in this recipe.

I wih I would have read the comments before trying this pinterest recipe. The brownies are tasty but very, very sweet. I like zucchini stuff to have at least a hint of zucchini. I would have doubled it. If you don't want anyone to know there's veggies in it then this is the recipe for you. As for the frosting,,,...sick! I followed it to a T and did all I could to save it. No luck! I ended up making a 2 nd batch of my good old standby frosting.

Just made these tonight after finding the recipe on Pinterest. LOVE THEM!!! However, mine definitely turned out more cake like...the batter was just like cake batter when I poured it. I am guessing the consistency may have something to do with the way you shred the zucchini? I used a grater and it was quite wet. I also used applesauce instead of the oil. As for the frosting, I cut back on the milk after reading the comments...perfect! I will definitely make this again!!! Thank you!!!

I made these brownies a few days ago- Gluten-free!!- and they were a big hit with everyone-- my 3yr old, my hubby, even my in-laws who asked us to share more brownies because they "ran out." LOL! To make them gluten-free I subbed straight across with Bob's Red Mill All-purpose gluten-free flour. Once I added in the zucchini my batter was thick and moist and not at all dry or crumbly. I also used olive oil because we prefer it over vegetable or canola, but next time I think I will try applesauce. Like a few others noted, my frosting was initially really runny (chocolate soup, anyone?) but I just added more powdered sugar (maybe 1/2 a cup?) and whipped it until it was light and airy.My 3yr old daughter actually cried this morning when she found out all the brownies were gone :( My hubby has already requested these for his "birthday cake" next year..... he just had a b-day 2 weeks ago lol :)

These were amazing, dare I say the best brownie I have ever had?! I didn't have zucchini so I used yellow squash. They were moist and wonderful! The frosting I followed the other commenters advice and added the milk gradually and that worked out perfectly. I am sure I didn't use the full amount. Thanks for an awesome recipe!!

These are some of the best brownies I have ever tasted! My batter was very dry and crumbly until I added my zucchini. After the zucchini was in, I stirred it for a few minutes and the zucchini made the batter very moist! For the frosting I only used 1/4 c of milk and added the butter/cocoa mixture to the powdered sugar mixture while it was still warm and then let it sit for about 5 minutes. It thickened up slightly and I spread it on the brownies while they were warm. The brownies and the frosting cooled together and they set up nicely! Thank you for a wonderful, delicious recipe!!

Oh my goodness! These tasted so good! I used 1/2 cup of natural applesauce and just a TBL of canola oil in place of the oil. My frosting was runny too, but tasted so good! I added cherry juice to it and used almond breeze, which I will gradually add next time.

Just made these and OMG they are so good. I had not read any of the comments before I made them and I am glad that I didn't. They turned out exactly like you said..alittle dry but once you put in the zucchini it moistened right up, pressed them into the pan and anxiously waited for them to bake. Made the frosting also and I did add alittle more powdered sugar to thicken it up. Let them sit for a few minutes until frosten "set up". Couldn't keep my husband away from them! Really good recipe and I wouldn't change a thing. Thus recipe is a keeper for sure. Thanks for sharing it!

I made these and the brownies came out moist. Everyone loved them. The frosting was too runny so added more powdered sugar. Next time I will add milk as I go. No one could tell there was zucchini in it!

What an awesome recipe! I love that we can sneak a veggie into a chocolate dessert ;) Perfect for this family. We are going to make them tonight using homemade applesauce as a substitute for the oil. Do you mind if I share this recipe on my blog? Thanks!

Baking these in the oven right now-just peeked and they look great! I used spelt flour and I'm skipping the frosting to keep it dairy free and lower calorie. Has anyone made them with less sugar? I know Splenda would work but I'm not a fan of fake sugar:-)

you were very irresponsible to post this recipe. you have a measurement a process incorrect. first, if the zuccini were mixed, not "folded", it would've been given the chance to moisten the batter. second, you listed 1/2 cup milk in the frosting ingredients which is an ABSURD amount of liquid. it should say more like 1/4 cup, adding only 1 tbsp. at a time. so disappointed. i'm sure you won't post this but please take it upon yourself to correct your recipe!

First of all it is not MY recipe, I have linked back in my post to where I found the recipe, here http://blogchef.net/zucchini-brownies-recipe/ so see fit to complain to them. Second this recipe has worked for me time & time again and we do enjoy this, why it's posted on my blog to share, so I do not see fit to correct anything about it. Lastly you were wrong, I did post this. I do hope you enjoyed them, and made them to suit your likes. :)

Wow you can leave a response like that but not your name..........hmmm the recipe works fine for me. Its rude people like you that make bloggers question why they do what they do! Show some respect. Deb

I thought there was something wrong with the frosting recipe. I didn't think to let it cool and set before putting on the brownies, especially since I am a recipe follower to a T and it didn't say to let it cool for a while first. I just continued to add more icing sugar and a bit more cocoa til it was the thickness I wanted and turned out great!

EEK!! I'm on a diet so I tried to make them with some substitutions I read about. I substituted black bean puree for the flour, apple sauce for part of the sugar, and greek yogurt for part of the oil. It didn't end well at all. Maybe I just try it as stated next time and just not frost them :(. The swaps cut the calories in half so I was really hoping it would work at well. I'll make them again on my free day :)

i just took these out of the oven and frosted a tester brownie (because i couldn't wait). It was just like a good old fashioned regular brownie.. so good!!! very sweet, but hey.. it's dessert. the batter for me wasn't dry and crumbly at all, but i used a monster zucchini from the garden and it was probably just over the 2 cups. Baked for the full 25 minutes and they came out perfect. As far as the frosting goes, mine turned out great, although i did read the comments first.. and was sure to let the margarine/cocoa cool completely and only used about 1/4 C of milk maybe? Thanks for the recipe!

These are baking in the oven right now. The batter wasn't dry at all; it was more like regular brownie batter. I do want to comment on the origin of this recipe, however. I saw that you linked it to blogchef, whom I absolutely love. During a search on allrecipes, I came across the exact same recipe, posted by a different person. Who knows where it actually came from. Thanks for sharing it here.

I just made these and there were FANTASTIC! Thanks for still blogging even with all the haters! The frosting was runny, but it TASTED fantastically, and it did set up fine after putting it in the fridge. I will make more of the frosting next time .. I had a hard time getting all of it on the brownies ;)

I made these last night b/c the picture on Pinterest looked so scrumptious :) I used 1/4c canola and 1/4c applesauce and cut the sugar to 1c. The "batter" was definitely crumbly, but once I started to mix in the zucchini it was much better. I had some issues with the frosting. First off, I didn't let the butter/cocoa mixture cool long enough, so my frosting is mottled :) Also, it was super runny, so I added some more conf sugar to make it a little thicker. I put them in the fridge overnight and they did get a crust on top, but it's still a bit soupy underneath. Oh well, they're edible and taste great!!! I will be making them again and doing my best to perfect the frosting! Thanks!

I actually just made this and my mixture was NOT crumbly at all. What I did was add the sugar, vanilla & oily together & mixed it very well (by hand). Then I added the shredded zucchini and mixed it by hand til some of the natural juices came out of the zucchini. Once it was moist I slowly incorporated the dry ingredients. It came out just like a regular brownie batter. And for the frosting I added only 1/4 cup milk plus 1 teaspoon ( I used fat free milk). It was super yummy!

I don't know what i did wrong... I triple checked all my ingredients and amounts and these did not turn out at all!! the batter stayed dry and crumbly even once they were baked, and the frosting didn't set...it was like soup. :(any ideas?? i'm up north in BC of Canada...altitude?

I Baked For San Diego Food Bloggers Bake Sale

.

.

..

Who's Hungry?

...

Get the Swidget 1.0 widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox! Not seeing a widget? (More info)
*If you like my photos, I don't mind if you want to use them as long as you ask first & give credit to myself and link back to my site, thanks!*